Viral meningitis

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Última revisão: 11 Dec 2025
Última atualização: 18 Feb 2025

Resumo

Definição

História e exame físico

Principais fatores diagnósticos

  • headache
  • nausea and vomiting
  • photophobia
  • neck stiffness
  • fever
Detalhes completos

Outros fatores diagnósticos

  • rash
  • Kernig sign
  • Brudzinski sign
Detalhes completos

Fatores de risco

  • infants and young children
  • young adults
  • older people
  • summer and fall
  • exposure to mosquito or tick vector
  • unvaccinated for mumps
  • use of swimming pools and ponds
  • immunosuppression
  • exposure to rodents
Detalhes completos

Investigações diagnósticas

Primeiras investigações a serem solicitadas

  • CSF microscopy
  • CSF Gram stain
  • CSF bacterial culture
  • CSF protein
  • CSF glucose
  • CSF PCR for enteroviruses
  • CSF PCR for herpes viruses
  • HIV serology/HIV reverse transcriptase (RT)-PCR
Detalhes completos

Investigações a serem consideradas

  • CT/MRI head
  • EEG
  • CSF viral culture
Detalhes completos

Novos exames

  • CSF C-reactive protein (CRP)
  • serum and CSF procalcitonin
  • CSF lactate
Detalhes completos

Algoritmo de tratamento

Inicial

possible bacterial meningitis

AGUDA

confirmed viral agent, other than HSV, varicella zoster, or CMV

HSV or varicella zoster confirmed causative agent

CMV confirmed causative agent

CONTÍNUA

recurrent viral meningitis

Colaboradores

Consultores especialistas

John Williams, MRCP, DTM&H

Consultant

The James Cook University Hospital

Middlesbrough

UK

Declarações

JW declares that he has no competing interests.

Agradecimentos

Dr John Williams would like to gratefully acknowledge Dr David Chadwick, a previous contributor to this topic.

Declarações

DC is an author of a reference cited in this topic.

Revisores

Karen Roos, MD

John and Nancy Nelson Professor of Neurology

Indiana University School of Medicine

Indianapolis

IN

Declarações

KR declares that she has no competing interests.

Vassiliki Syriopoulou, MD

Professor of Pediatrics

University of Athens

Aghia Sophia Children's Hospital

Athens

Greece

Declarações

VS declares that she has no competing interests.

Créditos aos pareceristas

BMJ Best Practice topics are updated on a rolling basis in line with developments in evidence and guidance. The peer reviewers listed here have reviewed the content at least once during the history of the topic.

Disclosures

Peer reviewer affiliations and disclosures pertain to the time of the review.

References

Our in-house evidence and editorial teams collaborate with international expert contributors and peer reviewers to ensure that we provide access to the most clinically relevant information possible.

Key articles

McGill F, Heyderman RS, Michael BD, et al. The UK joint specialist societies guideline on the diagnosis and management of acute meningitis and meningococcal sepsis in immunocompetent adults. J Infect. 2016 Apr;72(4):405-38.Full text  Abstract

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About viral meningitis. Jan 2024 [internet publication].Full text

Miller JM, Binnicker MJ, Campbell S, et al. Guide to utilization of the microbiology laboratory for diagnosis of infectious diseases: 2024 update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the American Society for Microbiology (ASM). Clin Infect Dis. 2024 Mar 5 [Epub ahead of print].Full text  Abstract

Reference articles

A full list of sources referenced in this topic is available to users with access to all of BMJ Best Practice.
  • Differentials

    • Meningitis, bacterial
    • Encephalitis
    • Encephalopathy (toxic/metabolic)
    More Differentials
  • Guidelines

    • Guide to utilization of the microbiology laboratory for diagnosis of infectious diseases
    • The UK joint specialist societies guideline on the diagnosis and management of acute meningitis and meningococcal sepsis in immunocompetent adults
    More Guidelines
  • Patient information

    Meningitis and septicemia

    Lumbar puncture

    More Patient information
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